You can take the cooler in and out with the seat hinges installed because mine goes in and out every weekend. It's not that tight, the biggest pain for me is because I dont have the seat stay-hatch/latch so I have to hold it with my head/shoulder while putting the cooler in or removing it. My local liquor store provides free ice, so that's always a stop on the way out of town, just carry the cooler in and they fill it up.